Although the raging waters of southern Alberta’s rivers never touched Olds during last June’s floods, people in this community did play a role in bringing aid and comfort to those who were affected by the disaster.
Although the raging waters of southern Alberta’s rivers never touched Olds during last June’s floods, people in this community did play a role in bringing aid and comfort to those who were affected by the disaster.
Last week, the province honoured the "heroes" of the flood, including Olds’ Doug Wagstaff and Fritz Latimer, who helped more than 120 Calgary seniors who were sheltered at Olds College after being displaced from their homes during the floods.
Wagstaff, who was the college’s manager of campus life at the time, worked with the executive director of the Trinity Place Foundation seniors housing complex to bring the displaced seniors to the college on June 28.
The seniors were housed in the school’s Frank Grisdale Hall residence and some of them did not return to their homes until mid-August.
Wagstaff said the college, Town of Olds and Alberta Health Services worked together to offer support to the seniors while they were in Olds and when the Olds Albertan informed him he had been named one of the heroes of the flood, he offered a humble response.
"My first reaction is, man, there were people in a whole lot worse circumstances in the environment that they were helping. I just did what needed to be done to help those seniors because they were quite distraught," he said. "In all the training and working with people in our community and region in preparing for disaster services and some of the smaller events that we had done, it wasn’t really a thought. It was just do it.
"It needed doing and there were some people in some very unfortunate circumstances and there were a lot of people that just did it (helped) because that’s part of the training that we’d been through."
Other members of his family also helped out at the college while the seniors were staying there and Wagstaff said his daughter Alayna befriended a woman who still writes her and even sends her birthday and Christmas cards.
Despite his modest response to the honour, Wagstaff, who is now the town’s community services director, said he can see the appreciation from the people he helped when he runs into them on the street in Calgary or during visits to the seniors residence.
"Just all of a sudden the smile comes back on their face. They don’t really have to say it, you can just tell by their smile," he said. "And the praises and the 'Thank yous’ and the smiles, when I met them again on the street, it was that same kind of look on their face that came back."
Latimer, the college’s student health services coordinator, said she worked to fill some of the "gaps" in what the seniors needed for health care.
"So we coordinated local services, health services, as well as a clinic in Calgary called the Alex, we coordinated the health and wellness program for them here as well as some of their social and recreational needs," she said.
The news of being named as a flood hero was also "pretty humbling" to receive, Latimer said.
"I’m definitely honoured that someone thought that we were part of that."
Altogether, the province has published a list of 1,300 heroes of the flood.
All the honourees will receive a certificate and letter of appreciation in the coming weeks.
The full list of heroes is posted at http://alberta.ca/heroes-of-the-flood.cfm and if you see others from Olds who were recognized, please let the Albertan know.
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